Question: For years now I have not been happy with myself because the lifestyle I want to live is not want I am living. I have heard it said that if you are not financially free by the time you are forty or fifty, it does not mean that you are living in the wrong country or the wrong time, it simply means that you have the wrong plan. Any time I think about that idea, I become unhappy because I am not living the lifestyle I want to live. For me to be happy in life is to achieve financial freedom. Can you help?

Answer: In itself, there is nothing wrong with wanting financial freedom, but it isn’t what you really want. What you really want is freedom from a mind that torments you every time it compares itself to the lives of others it imagines are happy because of what they possess. Truth be known, these people are possessed by a kind of spirit that can never be satisfied, as evidenced by the fact that there is no end to their appetite for more, and in this cycle is the seed of greed. Seek first freedom from fear and find there, in interior liberty, the fulfillment that only Truth can give. Then, in this new richness, you will be able to do what you really want and, without doubt, be successful there because you have first succeeded as a human being.

Question: My concerns for my future and making a decent living seem to prevent me from pursuing a spiritual life. The fear of not having enough drives my life. I am so confused about what my true purpose should be, and I long to strike a balance between worldly concerns and spiritual growth.

Answer: The only real confusion we face at any time is over what our purpose is here on this earth. Please don’t think this an oversimplification of the problem. Whenever we are unsure about what this life is for, we invent images to supply this missing certainty. One of these images, and a more common one these days, may be to picture ourselves as “successful” businesspeople, or experts who are looked up to and held in high esteem by others. Living from this purpose, our sense of self is all wrapped up in making our enterprises succeed, for we believe our security — in fact, in some ways our very “life” — depends upon keeping the picture intact. So, our time and energies, physically and psychologically, are absorbed by this image and its intended goal. Unfortunately, this goal to “win” is powerless to produce what it promises, and actually serves to divide us — a state that prohibits spiritual success.

Our efforts to do good, sound business do not have to be, as our false nature would have us believe, at the cost of being awake and enjoying the natural fruits of spiritual goodness. Let us each resolve, as many times as needed, to redefine what we really want from this life, and in the light of our renewed, higher purpose, place our attention to those areas of our inner life which this new purpose demands. When we live in this way, with Truth as our intention and truthfulness as our guide, there is no more conflict.

As far as what to do about those fears of not having enough to live the way you want to, ask yourself the following question: Can anything I am afraid to live without ever be the source of my fearlessness? The answer is obviously a resounding “No!” But what does this discovery teach us? What good is anything we may have if all it can do for us is make us frightened that one day we may not have enough of “it” . . . whatever that “it” may be — money, approval, family, friends, etc.? We must get tired of being frightened that one day we may not have enough of what it is in our lives that has failed and is powerless to make us fearless human beings. Then, as it grows clear to us that our problem is fear itself, we will know exactly what to do each time we start to feel afraid. We will become consciously fearless. We will be aware of the fear, but no longer buy into what it wants us to do about it. Here begins the truly fearless life.

Guy Finley

Bestselling "Letting Go" author Guy Finley's encouraging and accessible message is one of the true bright lights in our world today. His ideas cut straight to the heart of our most important personal and social issues - relationships, success, addiction, stress, peace, happiness, freedom - and lead the way to a higher life.

Finley is the Founder and Director of Life of Learning Foundation, a nonprofit Center for Spiritual Discovery. He is the acclaimed author of "The Secret of Letting Go" and more than 45 other books and audio programs that have sold over two million copies in 26 languages worldwide. His work is widely endorsed by doctors, business professionals, celebrities, and religious leaders of all denominations.

Through Life of Learning Foundation, Guy has presented over 5,000 unique self-realization seminars to thousands of grateful students throughout North America and Europe over the past 20 years and has been a guest on over 700 television and radio shows, including national appearances on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and NPR.

The Foundation's popular Key Lesson e-mails featuring inspirational quotes by Guy are read each week by a hundred thousand subscribers in 142 countries. Guy speaks four times each week on inner-life principles at Life of Learning Foundation's home in Merlin, Oregon. These meetings are ongoing and open to the public. For more information about Life of Learning Foundation, Guy Finley, and their life-changing messages, visit guyfinley.org.

"Guy Finley is...one of the leading experts at the forefront of human potential."
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"Guy Finley has helped millions live fuller, more peaceable lives."
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